NTT DOCOMO and DeNA have jointly announced their agreement to trial a 5G mobile-communications system expected to enhance the safety of self-driving vehicles through remote monitoring and passenger assistance.
In the trial, a vehicle and a remote centre will be connected via a 5G network, which boasts ultra-high-speed data rates beyond 10Gbps, excess capacity, extra-low latency and connectivity compared to existing mobile communications systems.
For the initial trial, high-resolution video images captured with high-definition cameras mounted on the vehicle will be transferred in real time via the 5G network, which will allow the centre to check for any driving irregularities and provide passengers with assistance as required.
The collaboration, which will combine DOCOMO’s 5G wireless technologies and DeNA’s knowledge in services incorporating self-driving technologies, aims to realise driverless services for remote monitoring and assistance.
DOCOMO is leading the research and development of LTE and 5G systems for vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communications.
DeNA, a mobile and online services provider in Japan, which has collaborated with leading companies in multiple industries, is currently developing transportation services which use self-driving and infrastructure technologies.

US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalDataThe trial will be demonstrated during DOCOMO R&D Open House 2016, which will take place at the DOCOMO R&D Centre in the Yokosuka Research Park near Yokohama on 17 and 18 November.
DeNA’s Robot Shuttle driverless bus will be used to demonstrate the transmission of live video from the bus via a 5G network.